Background:Neues Volk was a monthly publication of the
Nazi Party's Racial Policy Office. It was aimed at a wide audience, having
a circulation of 300,000 by 1938. It included material promoting the virtues
of the "Aryan Race," and explaining the deficiencies of Jews,
Poles, and other groups. The material here is the start of a page. There
is a lot of interesting material in the magazine, and I intend to add
more as time permits. Neues Volk was aimed at a broader audience
than Volk
und Rasse, a monthly published by the J. F. Lehmanns
Verlag that also covered racial matters.
Throughout the GPA, I consistently translate Volk as "people,"
though there is no really good English equivalent. By the term, the Nazis
meant those of ethnic German stock, wherever they happened to live, who
were bound together by ties of biology, culture, history, and territory.
Neues Volk
This is the cover from the September 1938 issue. A boy
reads up on Germanic history. There are other articles on village
genealogy, the genetic causes of criminality, Fascist Italy's African
territories, Gypsies in Austria, and the joys of family life.
This is the cover of the October 1938 issue. There are
articles on the importance of giving children German names, Bolshevist
domination of Prague, Hitler on how art is determined by racial worldviews,
and complaints about the Pope's antipathy toward National Socialist.
The cover notes that the circulation has reached 300,000.
This May 1939 cover has Hitler receiving the greetings
of a crowd. There are articles on the medal awarded to German mothers
with numerous children, May Day celebrations, anti-Semitism, and the
oldest German farm. A particularly interesting article is titled "Women
Who May Not Be Allowed to become Mothers." It promotes eugenics.
The cover of the June 1940 issue shows a Hitler Youth
drummer. Interior items include a poem praising families with many
children, and articles on race and achievement, the spread of Neues
Volk in the Netherlands, and Japanese scientific thinking on
mixed marriages.
The cover for March 1941. There is an article about
marriage between relatives, pictures of Germanic babies, a piece on
British crimes in South Africa, and an article claiming that Germans
farming on one side of the West Wall were much better than French
farmers on the other side. Another article discusses the importance
of a high birthrate, despite the war. There are two pages of questions
on racial matters from readers. One question is from a woman whose
mother wished her to marry a Chinese man, with whose child she is
pregnant. The answer: "Since you had such little resistance to
your mother, who has forgotten her racial nature, you have no right
to play the disappointed girl. You will have to bear the consequences
of your shameful behavior..... You gave in to the Chinaman, who has
shamefully abused our hospitality and grossly violated our land's
morality.... We have seen to it that his residence permit has been
revoked. Marriage between a German and a Chinese is out of the question."
The cover of the May 1941 issue shows happy children
strolling in the countryside. There are interior articles on armaments
production, the Jewish question, girls and careers, Romania, family
coats of arms, and some anti-Semitic cartoons. There are also questions
from readers about racial issues. A reader asks if he may marry a
Dutch girl. "Racial policy considerations would prohibit marrying
a Dutch girl only if she had foreign [i.e.,
non-Dutch] blood. In Holland, this might not only
be Jewish blood, but also the colored influence from Dutch colonies,
which is not uncommon in some circles. Assuming the racial background
of the girl is acceptable, you should not expect any occupational
difficulties from the planned marriage."
The cover of the July 1941 issue has a submariner home
on leave, telling his children of his exploits. There are articles
on the racial foundations of military life, foreigners working in
Germany (they are welcome, but sexual relations are prohibited), and
the joys of family life. There are more answers to questions from
readers about racial issues. For example, An infertile woman of 21
asks if she may marry a half-Jew. The answer: "Marriage with
a half-Jew is impossible for you, even if you are infertile. It offends
the honor of the German people when a German woman marries a half-Jew.
For this reason, you will not receive permission to marry. We strongly
urge you to break your relationship with the half-Jew, since you are
in danger of violating the law."
